Bakiraka
The Bākiraka is a clan of assassins within the Kushan empire led by Silat. They have fallen out of favor with Emperor Ganishka for unspecified transgressions and currently endeavor to regain his good faith through service against Midland and the other allied nations under the Order of the Holy See.Berserk manga; Chapter 56 The best of the Bākiraka clansmen are trained in a lethal form of martial arts in which their skin is hard as rock and their knuckles can break both armour and bone. Rakshas refers to them as the Tapasa. Overview The Bakiraka are first and foremost assassins, with all members seen so far being trained in a wide variety of killing methods. Silat implies that the Bakiraka have much pride, and have a code when it comes to killing. While this is questionable it appears they do have some form of morals as he despises Rakshas, who was formerly a Bakiraka, for his hedonistic and sadistic attitude towards killing. Strength Bakiraka are all lethal combatants, with the strongest of them being able to take on Apostles such as Rakshas in one-on-one combat. They are trained in stealth and when this advantage is presented to them, they are nigh impossible to stop. Though not all Bakiraka have the strength or body type that would imply killing prowess, assuming any one of them not to be dangerous would be a deadly mistake. The first Bakiraka seen appear to be able to see in the dark. It is not known if this is an innate ability or a trained one. Story The Bakiraka are a Kushan clan living in a hidden village in impregnable lands. As stated by Silat, the villages are all warriors trained in lethal strikes. Not even spirits may come near it. The first Bakiraka seen do not immediately give a deep impression of the Bakiraka besides being killers, as they are merely assassins that have switched their loyalties to the King of Midland and as such act as enemies to the Band of the Falcon in this instance. A group of five is first seen: a very lean and skeletal man who uses long claw blades, a massive man who hurls logs like javelins, a small hunched man wielding a pitchfork, a tiny imp that utilized poison blowdarts, and a veiled woman who used flammable but invisible gasses. These five Bakiraka bar the rescue group's way out of the tower tunnels, presenting a very difficult threat to the team. Guts, Judeau and Casca have confrontations with the claw-wielding and pitchfork-wielding Bakiraka, while Charlotte defends Griffith from the imp's poisoned darts and Pippin's quick instincts help in avoiding the woman's flames and slaying the brute. The only other Bakiraka seen are Silat, his Tapasa bodyguards, and Rakshas. Silat is a prince of sorts and Rakshas seems to have been exiled from the clan. Silat is first seen fighting against Guts in a tournament and losing, then attacking the Band of the Falcon and dueling Casca before meeting Guts again and losing their second confrontation. This causes a blow to Silat's pride and encourages him to train and be more wary of opponents, particularly Guts. Silat and the Tapasas are occasionally seen throughout the story, but do not come into the spotlight again until witnessing Ganishka's horrors (and saving his life) and bearing witness to Griffith's reincarnation and recruitment of elite Apostles. He later arrives to question the envoy out of Wyndham, but does not attempt to attack them, and arrives in Falconia in time to save Rickert from Rakshas, who he recognizes as former Bakiraka and condemns for his hedonistic killing ways. Silat quickly forms an alliance with Rickert, creating a plan to take on Rakshas and successfully escaping with Daiba and Erika, forming their own small band. Rakshas himself was a stealth worker under Griffith, who promised to slay him one day, but defend him until that day came. As an Apostle, Rakshas was amorphous and excelled in remaining hidden until deciding to reveal himself. In this way, he witnessed the defeat of Shiva from under Zodd's wings. After taking offense to Rickert slapping Griffith, Rakshas assaults, dueling Silat until his mask is broken and feeling the need to retreat. After entering Apostle form, he is slain by an explosion to the face courtesy of Rickert. Members * Silat (leader). * Bākiraka Thin Man: A member with very long legs and arms. He is very agile and he uses two claw-like blades in each hand to assassinate his targets. He is also able to hang in the between of two walls with his long legs. He is killed by Guts. * Bākiraka "Frog": '''A member with short legs and a stout body. He uses a small-sized trident as a weapon and hides in the canalization waters to strike from beneath his targets. Even with his deformed body, he is very fast in the water. He is killed by Casca. * '''Bākiraka "Imp": A member with a very small and thin body. He uses a small pipe which throws paralyzing poisonous needles, and he hides in the small holes in the wall. He is killed by Guts. * Bākiraka Javelin Thrower: A member with a very large and strong body like that of Tapasa. He carries a lot of spears and throws them, using an atlatl with perfect aim and immense strength at his targets. Unlike his allies, his fighting style is not very suitable for assassination. He is killed by Judeau. * Bākiraka Woman: The only female member of this clan has a slim body. She has a very unique fighting style. Firstly, she releases combustible dust and then causes it to explode with her two golden bracelets by striking them together and creating a spark. She is the only member to survive and successfully return with Charlotte, but she is killed by the King of Midland for allowing any harm to come to Charlotte and for allowing Griffith to escape. * The Tapasa. * Rakshas (Exiled). Gallery Panels= Bākiraka_Thin_Man.jpg|Bākiraka Thin Man Bākiraka_Frog.jpg|Bākiraka "Frog" Bākiraka_Imp.jpg|Bākiraka "Imp" shoots blow gun from drain. Bākiraka_Woman.jpg|Bākiraka Woman Bākiraka_Woman_Releases_Dust.jpg|The Bākiraka Woman releases her flammable dust. Bākiraka_Javelin_Thrower.jpg|Bākiraka Javelin Thrower Bākiraka_Girl_Demise.jpg|Bākiraka Woman, having displeased the King of Midland, receives his severance package. Notes References Category:Groups Category:Humans